Central Michigan Chippewas vs Ball State Cardinals Prediction, 3/6/2026 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: Central Michigan Chippewas vs Ball State Cardinals

Date: Friday, March 6, 2026

Location: Worthen Arena in Muncie, IN

TV: ESPN+

The Central Michigan Chippewas (10-20) are headed to Worthen Arena on Friday where they will go up against the Ball State Cardinals (11-19).

The Central Michigan Chippewas played Akron and walked away from this one with a loss by a score of 77-64 in their last game. Central Michigan finished with a 43.1% FG percentage (25 of 58) and buried 10 of 23 shots from beyond the perimeter. When they shot from the charity stripe, the Chippewas made 4 of 6 attempts for a percentage of 66.7%. Regarding grabbing rebounds, they collected a total of 24 with 5 of them being on the offensive end. They also recorded 16 assists for the matchup in addition to forcing the opposition into 12 turnovers and earning 7 steals. With regard to defense, Central Michigan allowed the other team to shoot 47.6% from the floor on 30 out of 63 shooting. Akron distributed 17 assists and had 12 steals for the contest. Moreover, Akron grabbed 41 rebounds (14 offensive, 27 defensive), but finished the game with no rejections. Akron walked away from this one shooting 54.5% from the free throw line by burying 6 of 11 tries. They also converted 11 out of their 33 attempts from beyond the perimeter. With respect to personal fouls, the Chippewas ended up finishing with 11 while Akron accounted for 12 personal fouls.

Logan McIntire is one guy who was a contributor for this game. He finished the game at 50.0% from the floor and dished out 2 assists. He was on the hardwood for 27 mins but wasn't able to snag any boards. He scored 15 points on 5 out of 10 shooting.

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Central Michigan comes into this game with a win-loss record of 10-20 so far this year. They currently have an average of 73.5 points per outing (248th in D-1) while hitting 46.6% from the field. The Chippewas are hitting 33.3% on shots beyond the perimeter (198 of 595) and 70.4% from the free throw line. As a unit, Central Michigan is collecting 32.8 rebounds per contest and is sitting with 455 dimes for the year, which is 109th in the country in terms of passing the ball. They are turning it over 12.7 times per game and as a unit are committing 17.6 fouls on a nightly basis.

On defense, the Chippewas are forcing their opponents into 12.3 turnovers per game and they draw 16.9 personal fouls. They concede 34.1% from 3-point land and they are ranked 251st in college hoops in PPG allowed (76.6). The Chippewas are giving up a field goal percentage of 45.9% (803 of 1,748) and they surrender 35.5 boards per game as a team. They currently rank 312th in college in giving up assists with 465 surrendered for the campaign.

In their last game, the Ball State Cardinals went home victorious with a score of 74-71 when they played Western Michigan. In the matter of team rebounding, Ball State allowed Western Michigan to collect 34 in all (6 on the offensive side). They shot 31.6% from behind the 3-point line by connecting on 6 out of 19 and ended up going 19 out of 24 at the free throw line (79.2%). The Cardinals allowed Western Michigan to knock down 23 of 56 tries from the field which gave them a rate of 41.1% in this matchup. When the final whistle blew, the Cardinals finished 29 out of 62 from the field which gave them a shooting percentage of 46.8%. With respect to 3-point shots, Ball State made 5 out of 13 tries (38.5%). They were able to make 11 of the free throws for a rate of 57.9%. Western Michigan had 13 fouls for this contest which took the Cardinals to the charity stripe for 19 attempts. They also turned it over 6 times, while getting 9 steals for this contest. The Cardinals were able to corral 25 defensive boards and 6 offensive rebounds for a total of 31 in the matchup.

Armoni Zeigler ended up having an impact for the Cardinals for the contest. He made 10 out of 19 for the matchup for a rate of 52.6%, and accounted for 7 rebounds. He totaled 28 points in his 42 minutes on the hardwood and accumulated 8 assists in the matchup.

Ball State has a win-loss mark of 11-19 for the campaign. The Cardinals commit 15.9 personal fouls per contest and they go 69.7% from the free throw line. They are dishing out assists 12.3 times per contest (293rd in Division 1) and they are giving up possession 10.6 times per game. Ball State has scored 2,008 points for the year (66.9 per contest) and they collect 32.4 rebounds per contest. When it comes to executing on offense, the Cardinals are shooting 41.5% from the floor, which ranks 336th in the country.

The Ball State defense concedes 33.6% on shots from 3-point land (229 of 682) and opponents are making 76.8% of their free throw shots. They have allowed 13.0 dimes and 35.9 rebounds on a nightly basis, ranking them 151st and 277th in the nation. The Cardinals on the defensive end are ranked 67th in college in points allowed per contest with 69.5. They have forced 12.8 TO's per game and allow teams to shoot 44.3% from the field (190th in the country).

Who will win tonight's NCAA game against the spread?

Tony Sink's Pick: Take Central Michigan

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